NASHVILLE INDIANA

 NASHVILLE INDIANA

By Duncan 

A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO, I made my way south. It was a spur-of-the-moment decision. 

The leaves in Indiana were turning, and this would be a peak weekend for nature to show its colors. You see, nature for me is watching the leaves change color from a comfortable chair next to a window having a fried chicken dinner, with mashed potatoes, brown gravy, green beans with little bits of bacon, fried biscuits with apple butter at the Nashville House. 

Nashville is an event. Going to Nashville, Indiana, in the fall is a rite of passage. Okay, maybe a little over the top here, certainly not near the 1960s rite of passage of drugs, sex, and rock and roll. But that is a different story. 

It's like a turkey on the table at Thanksgiving, the Cherub appearing magically on the old Ayres Clock in downtown Indianapolis. 

 L.S. Ayres Department Store installed the 10,000-pound, 8-foot-tall clock at the southwest corner of Washington and Meridian streets in 1936. 

The store added to the clock’s cachet in 1947 with a bronze cherub, which magically appeared to perch on the clock from Thanksgiving through Christmas. It’s been a beloved Indianapolis holiday tradition ever since.

But this story is about something other than the clock on the side of the old L.S. Ayers Building. We need to focus on fall and Nashville, Indiana. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. As most know, Nashville, Indiana, is a tourist trap for some a nature adventure for others. 

“Why, let’s go Camping!”  

Again, camping in Brown County or Nashville, I know nothing about. 

I had said earlier that this was a spur-of-the-moment decision. It was Sunday, about 11:00 AM, and I had this desire, this craving, this need for fried chicken at the Nashville House. It’s an annual want and need. It is the beginning of the holiday season, as far as I'm concerned. You’ve got to follow your instincts and your gut and enjoy life. 

So, I hopped on the super slab and missed all the back roads to Nashville. Yes, that was a mistake. The back roads to Nashville are part of the fun. I missed the hills and valleys of the Hoosier National Forest, the beautiful trees, and the winding roads. But sometimes life is a compromise. And this was an unusual year to figure out peak season in Indiana. Was this the weekend? Will it get better next weekend? I’m not taking the chance. 

Because Nashville is a tourist trap, I expected Nashville to be slammed. You know people everywhere. But when I finally walked the streets, I realized the town was almost deserted. 

In fact, I stepped off the sidewalk and took a picture of Van Buren Street, or as some call it Highway 135. I thought to myself. “Is this not the peak weekend?” Is this lack of foot traffic because of the economy? Could other activities like Sunday Colts football be pulling people away from Nashville? Whatever the reason, there were empty streets. 

Yes, the nick-nack shops were all open, and I noticed they were less busy than expected. I was in a leather shop, and I asked a very friendly fellow, “Is it me, or is foot traffic down?” 

He hedged his bet, “Well, yesterday we had more foot traffic than today.”  With 125 shops and places to visit, I was only interested in one place. The Nashville House. It was time. 

The Nashville House has roots. Very Strong Roots. If you go to Europe, you get a sense of history and architecture. The Nashville house started as a two-and-a-half structure, built in 1859. Loggers from the area use the Nashville House as a gathering place. Later it became a gathering place for artists. 

The original building, known as the Nashville House, burned to the ground in 1943. And it took a few years to rebuild.  Out of the ashes in 1948, the Nashville house was back in business. If you know anything about Nashville (the town) and the Nashville House (restaurant), you know that a fellow by the name of A.J. (Andy) Rogers is as famous as Nashville itself.    

 

Andy Rogers said in an “Old Brown County” article in 2002. 

“People say, ‘Well, we can’t change.’ But we can change and still retain some of the flavor of Brown County. We need people to live here. I’m in the tourist business, but we don’t want to turn this town over to the tourists. You can go to Gatlinburg to see what happens to a town that turns it all to business. It’s not a town anymore—it’s a shopping center. We need people here. This town needs to be alive.”

Andy passed in 2017, and a year later, the Nashville house will close its doors in October 2018. The Facebook Page of the Nashville House posted a statement. 

“It is with the heaviest of hearts that I announce that Oct. 28, 2018, will be the last day the Nashville House will be open,” it read. “We can’t thank all of our employees and patrons enough for over nine decades of loyalty and patronage.”

Andi Rogers-Bartels - youngest daughter of Andy Rogers. 

The Nashville House is back, and its new owner isn’t really such a new owner. Andy Roger’s youngest daughter, Andi Rogers-Bartels, and her husband, Lance Bartels, have stepped in as the third generation to run the family business. 

“For me, personally, it was what started my family being in Brown County,” Andi says of the restaurant. “My grandfather started it; my dad kept it.”

After inheriting The Nashville House, Rogers-Bartels considered renting the space to another restaurateur, but in the end she and Bartels decided they wanted to restore it. The building’s wood was polished, the electrical wiring was updated, and new kitchen equipment was installed. The restaurant reopened in July 2020.

Of course, the 2021 Pandemic became a hurdle to overcome. I assume, like all restaurants, that was a major setback for the restaurant. I was required, like everyone, to stay at home. 

I walked into the Nashville House with anticipation of a great meal. And as is the custom, you wait a few minutes for someone to take your name. The young woman looked up from the ledger and said, 

“I’m sorry we can no longer take any more reservations. We are seriously short of help, and it’s just impossible. Please forgive the inconvenience.” 

I’m standing there and people are sitting and standing around the reservation desk watching the reaction on my face. It’s common knowledge that the service industry is having problems getting help. The look on the woman's face that gave me the news also told me she was under immense pressure to be nice. Even if I was going to have a temper tantrum. Yes, I was disappointed. But, life is what it is. 

I thanked the woman, and smiled and turned and left the building. I was trying to hold my outward facial composure in front  of the gloating crowd who already had a reservation.  Was I mad, not mad, maybe disappointed, I wanted to shout out, “I came all the way from Indianapolis!” My puffed up ego was rolling around in my chest. I said to myself. “Today is not your day, Pal.” I remember walking down the sidewalk, looking back at the entrance. Was it Carley Simon who sang Anticipation?  

Anticipation, anticipation

Is makin’ me late

Is keepin’ me waitin’

I think Carley was talking about something different other than fried chicken and mashed potatoes. 

I looked across the street at the Hob Nob Corner restaurant, which has always been known as the “Taggart Building.” Granted, it’s an old building. Built between 1870 to 1875. The sign outside the building says it’s the oldest building in Nashville. I was thinking, with tongue in cheek, is it the oldest building in Nashville that has not burned to the ground? 

The menu gave a little history of the building. It started as a dry goods business, then Miller’s Drug Store and fountain service. Then, it became a small lunch room to grab a quick sandwich. 

Warren and Betsy Cole bought the business from another couple, Bob and Liz Hamilton, in December of 1979. Warren was working at the Walnut Room restaurant in Columbus, Indiana,   and Betsy was teaching. Warren was more interested in operating an upscale restaurant like the Walnut Room but thought the Hob Nob Corner might provide a foundation for other ventures. 

In 1985, the Coles opened a second Hob Nob in downtown Columbus. 

“The restaurant in Columbus was to be my upscale restaurant. It ran into the same kind of problem that the Walnut Room and others had run into, which is that business over there fluctuates depending on the health of Cummins diesel engine plant,” said Warren.  

After six years of breaking even, they closed the Columbus Indiana operation.

CHIEF ERIC COLE 

The Coles have three sons working at the Hob Nob Corner restaurant. Eric Cole followed his father into the restaurant business in a very serious way. Eric studied at the Premier Culinary Institute of America, New York City. Eric was hired after graduation by the Conrad Hilton, Indianapolis, Which was the first five-star restaurant in Indiana. Later
Eric worked at Marin County's iconic Lark Creek Inn. (California) The pull of Brown County and home was too much. Dad said, 

“Eric, come run the business, and you can control the kitchen to do what you want.” 

So, what did I learn from this trip to Brown County and Nashville?  

PATIENCE!!!

The Hob Nob was slammed, and there was a 45-minute wait to be seated. The service was good, and the food came out of the kitchen quickly. I ordered a glass of “Red” in a stemmed glass. Naomi, the waitress, was cheerful and went through the many red wines they had available. 

“Naomi, you decide what red wine to bring me. Pick one you like from what most customers like, and let me enjoy sitting here at this table and having a pleasant meal.”

What do I know about wine? Nothing. I like red. I ordered the steak with onions and mushrooms. 

There is an old joke that goes like this.   

A waitress approached the table.  

“Is there something wrong with the meal?” 

“No, not at all. Why do you ask?” 

“I noticed you have not photographed your meal yet!”